In their discussion of childhood abuse and neglect, Papalia and Olds (1972) have offered the following brief definitions:
Maltreatment of children can take several different forms. Child abuse involves physical injury...Neglect is withholding of adequate care, usually physical care such as food, clothing and supervision. Emotional neglect can also occur...(p.166)
This paper examines the history of the social response to childhood abuse and neglect from colonial to contemporary times. The social forces, value systems, institutions, and differing perspectives of childhood abuse and neglect that have evolved over time are emphasized in the report.
History of Child Abuse and Neglect and the Social Response
The social response to child abuse and neglect during colonial times has been discussed by Axin and Levin (1992). The authors make the point that during these times (16th and 17th centuries), abused and neglected children were viewed as potentially productive members of society that needed to be removed from the abusive and/or neglectful family and given the opportunity to prosper--this, where prosperity was defined in essentially financial terms rather than in terms of thriving emotionally and psychologically.
The notion of viewing the family rather than simply the child as in trouble and tailoring the social response to the family as a whole was not present during colonial times. According to Abramovitz (1976), this can be understood by examining the history of the family which, over time, changed from a rather impersonal contract to legitimize the transmission of property to heirs to a more meaningful relationship between parents and children, this change being in part brought about by the religious idea that children were the living images of their parents, an inspired idea which Abramovitz feels operated to enhance the family bond.
Regarding the family, Abramovitz (1976) notes that during the Colonial P...